Where words fail, music speaks.
Hans Christian Andersen
The Threshold Choir is a movement that was started 14 years ago in El Cerrito, California.
The Choirs, if asked to come to a bedside, sing to those who are dealing with grief and dying. They travel to homes and hospitals, usually two to four singers at a time, and share the comfort and joy of song to those who are suffering at that threshold between life and death.
For just 20 minutes or at times bit longer, the Threshold Choirs sing and repeat the melodies that appeal to the ones they have come to support, both in type of music and in choice of spiritual direction (no religious affiliation required).
It is an all volunteer organization with more than 100 chapters throughout the USA (our nearest location being the Santa Barbara Threshold Choir). They also run one chapter in Europe, three in Australia, and three in Canada.
Go to www.thresholdchoir.org to learn more. Find your nearest Choir and invite them to sing for you if you need it. Or join the Choir yourself.
My grandfather, Quentin ‘Buddy’ Ogren, had my family sing to him on Christmas Eve in 2008, the day before he died. Playing the piano, our family sang one of grandpa’s favorite songs, Union Maid. Towards the end of the song, a smile came upon Grandpa’s face and from a comatose-like state some of his last words were the lyrics: “I’m sticking to the union ‘til the day I die!"
What would you want sang to you while you are dying? Is there a song or a melody that calms or is especially powerful to you? What will be the right notes for you when you face the threshold?
